The Wittenberg volleyball team is rolling toward what the players and coaches can only hope is the best finish in school history. For the third time in the last four years, the Tigers have advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament quarterfinals after capturing the Great Lakes Regional championship.
Wittenberg is now on a 17-match win after winning the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament championship on Nov. 5 and the regional title on Nov. 12. The Tigers improved to 33-4 overall on the season with wins on their home court against eighth-seeded Fontbonne University on Thursday, fifth-seeded Ohio Northern University on Friday and third-seeded Calvin College on Saturday.
The Tigers will take on New York University in a national quarterfinal match hosted by the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in Salem, Va. Wittenberg plays at 1 p.m., the first of four matches that day, with the winners advancing to the national semifinals on Friday at the same site. The national championship match is scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 17, in Salem, Va.
Wittenberg has never advanced beyond the quarterfinal round. The Tigers reached it previously in 2002 and 2004 before losing to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and La Verne University respectively.
If things turn out differently in 2005, a pair of precocious freshmen may well be credited with the breakthrough. Libero Laura Fender (Toledo, Ohio/St. Ursula)leads the Tigers in digs, and she has filled in for graduated two-time NCAC Libero of the Year Emilie Schmid quite well. Outside hitter Jackie Williams (Rocky River, Ohio/Magnificat) has become a key offensive weapon for the Tigers since stepping into the lineup midway through the season, and she now leads the team in kills and is on pace to break the school record for attack percentage. Williams was one of four Tiger players honored by the NCAC last week as she became the first Wittenberg player in four years to claim Newcomer of the Year honors.
Also of note has been the performance of the sophomore setting tandem of Ashley Anderson (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) and Sarah Matesich (Granville, Ohio/Granville), who expertly worked the ball around on offense during the Great Lakes Tournament. The Tigers finished with a significantly higher attack percentage in each of the three matches last weekend, in part thanks to good ball movement by the setters.